UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION
SOUTHWEST REGION NEWS SERVICE
Contact: David Burton, civic communication specialist
County Program Director – Greene County
Tel: (417) 881-8909
E-mail: burtond@missouri.edu
Source: Rebecca Williams, Joplin Tornado Info, 417-501-5187, email at joplintornadoinfo@gmail.com
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A new book inspired by the recovery efforts and techniques developed following the Joplin 2011 and Branson 2012 tornadoes is now available for purchase online.
The book, "Using Social Media for Disaster Recovery" is available on Amazon.com and Createspace.com.
Since first being posted online in March of 2012 as a free publication, the publication has been downloaded and printed over 20,000 times, used at FEMA trainings, and even distributed by Texas Governor Rick Perry to county emergency management personnel in Texas.
This same publication has been profiled in national media and called "informative and useful" to anyone interested disaster recovery or creating a successful social media presence.
This latest edition of the guide is now available as a 28-page book (8.5 x 11 inches in size) for $4.99 on Amazon.com. The book is written by Rebecca Williams and Genevieve Williams, creators of Joplin Tornado Info on Facebook, and David Burton, civic communication specialist for University of Missouri Extension and creator of Branson Tornado Info on Facebook.
The book also contains information about similar pages done in Woodward, Oklahoma and Wichita, Kansas as well as the Missouri Flood Info page.
The book draws from experience with Joplin Tornado Info (47,000 followers) as well as the things learned when implemented with Branson Tornado Info (17,000 followers). Some of the guidelines and suggestions for doing similar pages have also been updated in this edition.
For speaking engagements or training opportunities about using social media in disaster recovery, contact the authors of this guide directly: Rebecca and Genevieve Williams at joplintornadoinfo@gmail.com and David Burton at burtond@missouri.edu.
